Some Fashion Trends Are Groundbreaking And Some, Like Florals For Spring, Are Not
Here's what using data to decode them can tell us, anyway.
The interesting thing about using data analytics to understand fashion trends is it can give you the ability to decode what, regardless of what people might be saying, is actually and objectively popular.
For example, two weeks ago I posted that one of the most notoriously controversial fashion trends of the last decade, skinny jeans, were rising in popularity. To arrive at this conclusion, I analyzed a combination of Google search traffic, the quantity of online posts mentioning skinny jeans, and the sentiment of these posts. The sentiment analysis is specifically important, as it helps confirm that the people posting about skinny jeans are actually speaking about them positively. Which, overall, they were. Interesting.
And it’s not just skinny jeans that people love to hate but secretly love. Some fashion trends that are commonly labeled “over” or “overdone” are, in fact, not. Like the mini UGG boots, which have consistently spiked back up in popularity every fall for almost five years now, despite being quite the polarizing shoe.
Or the big, cozy, checked Acne Studios scarf—a luxury item so consistent and recognizable it’s basically a fall fashion staple. Last fall, it grew nearly 300% in popularity. Two years ago, it rose 20%. People may come and go, but the Acne Studios scarf consistently shows up, year after year, despite a near $400 price tag and claims that, this time, it might not.
So, using data to decode fashion trends and make sense of conflicting opinions can offer conclusions I probably wouldn’t have arrived at otherwise. It helps make an industry that’s incredibly subjective just a little bit more objective. However, just like how data can reveal fashion surprises, it can also sometimes confirm quite obvious conclusions. What happens then?
TANK TOPS? FOR SUMMER? ACTUALLY KIND OF GROUNDBREAKING.
I’ve frequently joked about how the software I built to analyze fashion trends often tells me things I probably could have figured out on my own. And certainly without needing to learn to code. Like that sweaters and cardigans and turtlenecks rise back up in popularity every fall. Or that tank tops are popular in the summer months. Or, famously, that florals are in for spring. Actually, many fashion trends and the data that supports them aren’t groundbreaking at all.
Even though polka dots overtook florals as the dominant print this past spring. But we can table that conversation for another time.
On one hand, this means the software is working! Ha ha! On the other hand, however, there are still interesting insights that can be gathered from the data. For instance, it’s not always about what is rising in popularity, but at what magnitude.
Take the white tank top craze of summer 2025 as an example. The white tank top was not only rising in popularity—it was, like, exploding. This June, white tanks were dominating online fashion discourse, growing around 27% in popularity daily. They were also around 160% more popular versus the same time last year. The data was showing that something more than just a seasonal trend cycle was happening.
A widespread obsession with such a basic, not-at-all-new fashion item could signal a couple of different things. First, it seemed like a continuation of how the world as a whole was returning to the basics, as simpler items like wire headphones and dairy milk were simultaneously increasing in interest and outperforming their alternatives (Bluetooth headphones; oat and almond and coconut milk).
The tank top craze could also have been a reflection of broader worsening consumer sentiment. If consumers felt anxious about spending on new, or bolder fashion, perhaps the only thing we felt we could obsess over was a basic white tank? Latching onto the things we already know and are familiar with?
Or, maybe in an endless chase of quickening trend cycles, had the fashion world finally run out of trends to talk about? Was this all just one big delusion? The unprecedented tank top hype was probably a combination of many of these things, and certainly an interesting thought starter.
Next year, of course, we can anticipate tank tops will see a seasonal spike as we head into summer. Duh. But it’ll be the magnitude at which they rise, then, that can perhaps give us an interesting insight into the current state of the fashion world, and what something as seemingly simple and meaningless as the white tank top can tell us about it.
TIMING IS EVERYTHING
In addition to a trend’s magnitude, it’s also interesting to track its timing, or when exactly previously-predicted fashion trends start to shift.
For example, it was no surprise that, as we headed towards September, consumers’ excitement for fall fashion began to heat up. Things like bootcut jeans and turtlenecks and When-Harry-Met-Sally-inspired cable-knit sweaters were suddenly right around the corner and people, of course, were excited.
However, when I took a look at the popularity of fall fashion trends, I noticed they were gaining steam earlier in the year than before. In terms of the data, there were around 400% more online articles surrounding fall fashion in July 2025 versus the same month in 2024. This year, people were really freaking ready for fall fashion.
Could this simply have been a coincidence? Sure. Or, did ever-quickening trend cycles push consumers to become tired of summer fashion sooner, and already start anticipating the next best thing? Alternatively, could the persistent increase in global temperatures be tiring consumers of hotter, summer months and making them eager for fall fashion faster?
It’s not revolutionary that people are excited for a fall wardrobe, but when even the most predictable fashion trends start to shift and move in new, unpredictable ways, it’s interesting to try and connect the dots as to why. And maybe there is something that can be learned—even outside of the world of fashion itself—from how the fall fashion excitement is moving earlier in the calendar year.
IN CONCLUSION…
The fashion industry is notoriously fast-paced and in a constant state of change. Data, then, can help attempts to better understand driving forces for consumers as they continuously evolve in turn. Because measuring even the most reliable parts of fashion—like white tank tops in summer, sweaters and turtlenecks in fall—can offer unexpected insights beyond solely the clothing itself.
It’s not just about identifying the trend, but uncovering what it might say about broader culture, consumer moods, and the way we move around the world. And while fashion can be quite reliable, the reasons behind it often surprise.
Would be interested to know your thoughs/data on what's trending vs what people are actually wearing and buying. You metion skinny jeans becoming popular again but for me it feels like most people wear mid rise skinny or straight leg jeans. As someone who lives in a smallish town, I rarely see people wearing these seasonal trends unless they then become a staple/reoccurring. Is there a difference between what people are searching for vs actually buying as well? Really interesting article :)
Interesting! Curious to know your thoughts why certain items keep coming back despite the almost pushback against them (like saying Uggs are out but keep rising in popularity)?